Forge ahead in faith.

Happy Independence Day!

It has been quite a few weeks (almost two months! 😬🙈) since I last posted on the blog. It has been a very busy summer!

Our trip to Florida was AMAZING!! Super fun and the perfect first anniversary trip! We had an amazing time and it was so good to see Ricky's parents for a bit!

After we got back from our trip, I was able to begin working full-time at my job, which has been a blessing in many ways! We were able to buy a new car recently that was within our budget and had a few of our must-have features. Ricky's job downsized their HQ department, so he started a job search and found a new job relatively quickly that is closer to where we live and pays a little more. We are looking at several different housing options for this next year (come August) and have come across a few prospects of which we hope at least one will work out!

We have been very, very blessed this summer, and I am so grateful!

I have had many opportunities to work on some of my crafting/projects, which has been good for me creatively. I have had plenty of time to read, which has been sooo nice! I love getting into a new universe through books! And this last week especially I have taken time to do some indexing work, which has been really cool! I came upon someone with my same name spelling yesterday, which was totally awesome! 

I have been working on making time for my scripture study and personal prayers, and I am so grateful for the messages and answers that are found in the scriptures. I am grateful for the peace that my personal study time brings, and I am grateful for the blessings of the temple. We had the opportunity to go walk around the temple grounds a few weeks ago, and I can't wait for us to be able to go inside again! We just need to figure out the best day and time for us to go together (and I need to find my recommend...😬🙈).

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I had a lot of time during church today to ponder, and I wanted to share some of my thoughts.

These things I know:

• God loves me.
• Jesus Christ died for me.
• The temple brings me peace.
• Reading the scriptures brings the Spirit into my life, and gives me clarity.
• The prophet speaks to us from God.
• The Atonement is real, and is for more than just what we have done wrong. It is for our pains and sorrows–both physical and spiritual. 
• The gospel of Jesus Christ is true. His teachings and ministry on Earth during His life are an outline, guideline, for how we should live our lives. 

There are things I do not know, especially pertaining to the life after this one. But this I do know: God loves us! And He has asked us to:

1) Love God; and

2) Love our neighbor like ourselves. 

I firmly believe that the answer to life's problems is love. As Elsa says in Frozen, "'Love will thaw'. Love! Of course." If people were more willing to love everyone, no matter their background, race, religion, etc.,  I believe that life would be better for everyone. We would feel more compassion towards each other, and 

I saw a quote today from then-Elder Russell M. Nelson that I loved. He said, "All that the Fall allowed to go awry, the Atonement allowed to go aright." 

During Sunday School, we were chatting about some things that the Lord asks us to do, and Kim said they don't always turn out the way we thought they would, but sometimes it's more about seeing if we were willing to do what God asked us. "Are you willing to put (fill in the blank) aside and serve and follow the Lord as He asks you?" Are we willing to make the sacrifices that He asks us to? Are we willing to forge ahead in faith when we do not know the outcome?

I was thinking today about how hard it is sometimes to make changes, and how hard some trials can be. I decided that I need to take things one day at a time...one moment at a time...one choice at a time. And even though some trials of life are more difficult, and longer-lasting, than others, God will be with me no matter the trial. So as long as I keep following His will for me, and doing what He asks of me, I know that He will make a way. 

I know that God loves you very much. I do too! I hope you have a great week!

Xoxo

Mattie

Christ can take our pain and make it into a blessing.

This week has been crazy–what with finishing my last finals, starting my job full-time, and technically kind of having an emotional breakdown as one chapter of my life was ending and a new one is beginning. I think that I've felt every emotion under the sun and then some this week.

Learning patience, tolerance, and other emotions like that sucks. I wish that I could just see where God wants me to be. Or what He wants me to do. Or learn. I wish I could trust Him more in different aspects of my life. It's rough, you know? I just want to be with someone who will make me happy who I can make happy, and who I can build a life with...but my life is more than just a path, more than just a journey, more than just a destination...my life is a CHANCE. A chance to be someone better. A chance at happiness. And it starts with me. Even if I already feel like I've been doing everything right, God knows when the TIMING is right.

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Brother Smith talked in sacrament meeting about a few scriptures in the 2nd Epistle of Peter, and there were a few things that he talked about that I wanted to mention. He asked a question: How do we get from faith to charity? And then he answered the question. My favorite thing that he talked about was the definition of virtue. He said that virtue means to do good, and to be good, and I loved that! It gave a new meaning to the scripture "let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly". Virtue is goodness and if we let GOODNESS garnish our thoughts, life will be better.

In Relief Society, we talked about the General Conference talk by Tad R. Callister entitled "The Atonement of Jesus Christ" and I loved all of the comments and the direction that the discussion went in.

We talked about forgiveness, and how forgiveness comes from love. We talked about how God's forgiveness and forgiveness from others in our life are not entangled together. You can still be forgiven by God, even if those in our life do not forgive us. I thought that was a beautiful thought. No matter what happens, you can be forgiven by God.

We talked about how people can CHANGE and how we need to see people as they ARE and not as they WERE. I think that this is such an important reminder–not only about others, but as ourselves, too. I know that I have struggled with this at times in my life, but I am not the same person as I was. Even if it doesn't seem like I have changed much sometimes, I know deep down that I have changed a lot. I need to let myself stay changed, and we need to let others stay changed.

Our Savior is always with us–and no matter what we go through, He will be there to strengthen us. He will be there to help us deal with the pain, and the struggles, and He will be there to help us learn and grow from it. He will be there to help us find the blessings in our trials.

I have two things to share now. One is a little thought I had during the last little bit of Relief Society.

TRUST. Trust is HARD. Trusting a Being that you can't see is hard, too. 

PATIENCE. Patience is HARD. Patiently waiting for blessings to come is hard, too. 

FAITH. Faith is HARD. Having faith that everything will turn out all right is hard, too. 

Faith is the pathway to happiness. As we trust the Lord, and are patient, those things that we want will come in time. 

The other thing is this: life is easier said than done. But as we take little steps in the direction that we want, God will bless us with the confirmation that it is right, or the knowledge that it is not right. I am still learning to accept this, and to accept that right now, God wants me to choose of the things that I have been pondering, and that any one of them is going to be right. I'm absolutely TERRIFIED that I am going to make the wrong decision...but I need to trust that God will take the one I choose and use it to help me grow and change.

Xoxo
Mattie

I can give more because He gave all.

At the start of the New Year, my mind kind of resets my daily schedule and I long for a new daily routine. Trying to keep up with said daily routine becomes difficult because there are so many things that I want to do in my new routine. But I have to start somewhere, so I've been delving into my scriptures this past week. It's been a blessing because I have been stressed about school starting this month but in studying my scriptures, and talking to my Heavenly Father, I have been a little more at peace with the starting of the new semester. I am looking forward to the new semester and I am excited to see where it takes me!

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This week I was able to start studying the new Come, Follow Me manual, and as I was studying, I learned that being a disciple means to give my whole heart and soul to my Heavenly Father and Savior. Progressing in discipleship comes as I identify what I lack, and what I need to change, and how I seek to more fully follow Them. I learned that there is more I can do to turn to my Father in Heaven, and there is more that I can give. I can sacrifice my time for Him because He sacrificed His Son–who sacrificed His life–for me.

Jackson shared a poem in his testimony during fast and testimony meeting that I loved and I wanted to share it.

GETHSEMANE

In golden youth, when seems the earth,
A Summer land for singing mirth,
When souls are glad, and hearts are light,
And not a shadow lurks in sight.
We do not know it, but there lays
Somewhere, veiled under evening skies,
A garden all must sometimes see,
Gethsemane, Gethsemane,
Somewhere his own Gethsemane. 

With joyous steps we go our ways,
Love lends a halo to our days,
Light sorrows sail like clouds afar,
We laugh and say how strong we are.
We hurry on, and, hurrying, go
Close to the borderland of woe
That waits for you and waits for me;
Gethsemane, Gethsemane,
Forever waits Gethsemane.

Down shadowy lanes, across strange streams,
Bridged over by our broken dreams,
Behind the misty caps of years,
Close to the great salt fount of tears
The garden lies; strive as you may,

You cannot miss it on your way.
All paths that have been, or shall be
Pass somewhere through Gethsemane.

All those who journey soon or late,
Must pass within the garden's gate;
Must kneel alone in darkness there,
And battle with some fierce despair.
God pity those who cannot say:
“Not mine, but thine;” who only pray,
“Let this cup pass;” and cannot see
The purpose in Gethsemane.
Gethsemane, Gethsemane,
God help us through Gethsemane.
—Ella Wheeler Wilcox.

 I thought this was a beautiful poem and really loved the imagery and the peace and Spirit that I felt as Jackson read it, and as I reread it again just a few moments ago. I am so thankful for my Savior, who prayed and prayed and wept with me in mind; He prayed and wept FOR me, and I am so thankful that He was able to give me many more chances to try again. I am so thankful that, in times of loneliness and sorrow, I am able to have a comforting hand, and someone who knows exactly what I am going through.

"God is love." Someone said that in their testimony today. I loved it, especially because 'charity is the pure love of Christ'. So as we are being charitable, we are giving God and His love to those around us. I am so thankful that I have many opportunities each day and each week to bless the lives of those around me, and to show them not only my love for them, but God's love for them as well.

I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Xoxo
Mattie

He lives!

Happy Easter! So grateful for my Savior, and for His sacrifice, and for His support, and His love. I know that He lives! I love Him and I am grateful for all that He has done, and all that He does, and all that He will do.

Today in Relief Society, we talked about being an example, and a light, but the overall message that I received (because we talked about it a lot) was about love. These are some small pieces of wisdom and truth that my friends said (or that I thought) throughout the lesson that I loved:
-None of what we learn (in church) matters unless we take action.
-Faith is not by chance but by choice.
-Our Savior is the greatest example of being an example in word and in conversation. He treated everyone with the same amount of respect and love, no matter their status.
-If we have it in our hearts to serve, anything is possible.
-There is nothing we could ever do to make Him stop loving us. (This reminded me of the song Miracle, originally done by Celine Dion but another version I love is by Daniel Beck, found here)
-Once you love those around you, everything else falls into place.
-This point that my friend made was beautiful and powerful. She said (going off of what I said that when we love and serve others, we are loving and serving Christ) that whatever we do to others, we do to Christ. Going off of that, another friend said that it's really hard to be mean or unkind to someone when you think of how much Christ loves them.

The last thing that was said was so powerful to me. The Spirit can help us focus and want to do things. The more good we do and put into our lives, the less room there is for evil/sadness in our lives. 

I am so grateful for the girls in my hall. I love and learn from these ladies every day, and I'm so blessed to have them in my life! I am so grateful for my Savior, and for the Atonement. I know that He lives, and I know that as I follow Him, I will become who my Heavenly Father knows I can become. 

A message about life and love. I hope.

I know I already posted today, but I need to post this. I had a headache today (shocker, I know) and I just didn't know why. And earlier today (around 4) something so extremely small happened that made me a little sad (I don't even know why; it was so stupid). And then I had a meeting about my calling, which is Compassionate Service and I was like, "Okay, it's all good when I get to pray for and serve others and be compassionate towards them, but what about when I need compassionate service?" And I hate asking people for help like that because I'm really blessed because I don't have things as bad as others. And so I decided to watch something, and I was, until like 40 minutes ago when I decided that maybe walking would help get rid of my headache. So I got up and I was looking at Facebook and one of my friends liked a post I had shared and written yesterday. I was looking at it and I was like, "Oh my gosh, I needed that!" And I almost started crying but I walked around in circles a couple times (strangely, this tactic works sometimes for different things like trying not to stress or cry. I don't know why) and decided to walk downstairs. Did you know it's really hard trying to find a private spot in a dormitory hall where there's hundreds of girls living? Like, the only private areas are the practice rooms downstairs. ANYWAY. So I decided to come downstairs, which is where I am now. And then I decided to turn on my church/inspirational playlist and read my scriptures. But when I opened my LDS library app, a song came on that made me start sobbing. I just started sobbing (and it was awful to listen to because I sob weirdly when I'm trying not to sob really loudly and so I tried not to sob so much but that just made it sound even more awful) and so I turned to the section with texts about Jesus Christ. And I read The Living Christ, or the prophets and apostles' testimony of Jesus Christ. And this song ("Take Me There" by Hilary Weeks) was just describing exactly how I felt and what I needed and wanted and it made me cry more, but as I kept reading The Living Christ my tears stopped streaming down my face. I know He lives. This world we're living in—it's getting really bad, and it's making me sad for everyone who's hurt because of bad decisions made by other people. I wish I could just wrap all of those people who are hurting in a big hug and I wish I could make it all better. But I can't. Maybe...maybe I'm supposed to serve a mission, to spread His message of love and peace. Until this moment, I never actually felt a burning desire to serve a mission. It's always been something that wasn't really a part of my plan and I thought that was it (oh gosh, here come the tears again). Maybe I need to ask God again. Maybe I need this. But I'm scared. I'm not gonna lie—the thought of serving a mission has always frightened me. I'll have to ponder on that some more, I think. ANYWAY. Back to how I wish I could wrap everyone in a big hug. I personally cannot. But because God is real, He can bless them. I know everyone is always like, "How can an all-powerful God let bad things happen? How come so many people die because of cancer, or terrorists?" First I have to say this: I'm so sad about the way that our country (and the world) is going. People aren't as trusting in or believing in God. And it's so sad to me. I know I haven't been as studious with my personal spiritual growth (weird, right? You'd think at BYU it would be easier) but I still believe in Him. I love Him, and I know that His plan is just too grand for our human brain to comprehend fully. I don't know everything but I do know that God loves us. I do know that He sent His Son—Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer—to die for us. He DIED. Can you comprehend that? He did absolutely nothing wrong, and yet they crucified Him anyway. He atoned for you and He suffered for EVERYTHING. All of your pains—heartaches, afflictions, wounds, headaches, bumps, bruises, etc.—and all of your worries and stresses and He suffered for your sins. All of them. All the little ones, and all the bigger ones. He bled from every pore of His body sweat like drops of blood. He was in agony. And someone brought this to my attention today: Luke 22: 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. He "prayed more earnestly". What should we do when life gets tough? Get on your knees (if you can) and pray. God doesn't always answer our prayers exactly the minute we demand an answer. Sometimes it takes awhile. But "for those who embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they come" (Elder Holland). Answers and blessings will come. You just have to have faith. I know I'm just a girl from Utah and you're probably going, "Oh, what does she know?" But I am telling you: He will answer you. He will bless you, and He will help you. I promise. I don't know everything about history, or math, or science. I don't know why some people do the things they do. But people are human. We make mistakes. And we are imperfect. But I know that He loves you, regardless of your mistakes. He does not condone the sin, but He loves you and He blesses you and He sends people to you to do His work in His place because He can't personally be here. I know He lives. I know He loves you. I promise He will help you. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. 

One step at a time.

During the sacrament today, I was thinking about the Savior and His Atonement. I wrote a poem, kind of:

He did not have to suffer.
He did not have to die.
He could have stopped at any time,
Yet He did not.
He loves us so much He suffered.
He loves us so much He died.
So turn to Him in times of need;
He suffered and died for you.

Today in Relief Society, we talked about perfecting ourselves, and putting on the armor of God. One of the girls in my hall shared a quote by Elder Ballard, and I loved this part: "True spiritual power lies in numerous smaller acts woven together in a fabric of spiritual fortification that protects and shields from all evil." That reminds me of the scripture in 2nd Nephi, "line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little." (2nd Nephi 28:30). It's easier to take things one step at a time, especially because we are not perfect, and we make mistakes. Sometimes I think we feel like we have to be perfect right now, and that it can't wait. It doesn't always happen all at once. But if you take things slowly—one step at a time—and work with the Lord, it'll be easier. It'll still be hard, but it won't be so hard. :)

 

He loves you so much.

Today was such a good meeting!! In testimony meeting, everyone kept talking about how Christ will always be there for you and He will always love you. Another repeated topic was that, "I use the Atonement every single day." One of my friends said in her testimony today, "If Christ is not the center of your life, what is?" That really struck me, and I feel like someone needs to hear it. Make the necessary adjustments so that He is the center of your life, and your life will realign itself and be easier to bear–it won't be easy, but it will be easier if He is the center of your life. <3

In Relief Society, we talked about the Sacrament, and how it is a gift from God, and a time to reflect on the past week, and think about what we can do in the upcoming week to be better. We also talked about how our thoughts, actions, and choices should emulate Christ. We talked about how the Atonement is there for us, even if we don't use it. He has already paid the price–He sacrificed His life so that you could return to live with our Heavenly Father–the least we can do is accept Him and not let His sacrifice be in vain. <3

I know that He lives. I know that He loves us, and I know that He is always there for you, and that He will always send you the things, people, and experiences you need (to grow stronger, and to comfort and love you) when you need them. I know this because I know that He knows me, and I know that He knows YOU. 

I am so grateful for Him, and for His sacrifice, and His love, and His blessings. I know that I will be blessed as I follow Him and try to become more like Him in every way. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Christ and His Atonement are always there for us.

Today we learned about the Atonement. I'm so, so grateful for the Atonement. Honestly, I don't know what I'd do without the Atonement. It's helped me in so many ways...when I've done something wrong, when I've felt alone, when I've felt lost, when I get hurt, when I've felt sad...Christ (and His Atonement) has always been there for me, and I'm so thankful. I'm thankful that He didn't just suffer for my sins, He suffered for my pains, my afflictions, when I've had to deal with death—He suffered for all of that. He's the only one who knows EXACTLY how I feel. I mean, sure, people who have been through similar situations can kind of sympathize. Also those who have gone through the deaths that I have have felt as sad as I did, surely, but we all went through it differently, and He is the only one who knows exactly how we dealt with it, and I'm grateful that I'm not the only one who knows what I go through in life. There are times when I am extremely disappointed in myself and I feel really bad but I know that He is right there, waiting for me to make things right. Even when I don't deserve it. Even when I was so, so stupid and I did something so, so wrong and I definitely didn't deserve to be forgiven, He was (and is) right there—waiting for me to forgive myself so I can move on with my life. I know there are times when we don't feel worthy, but we need to repent. We need to change—change our heart, and our actions, and our circumstances. We sometimes try to, but we can't do it alone, which is why Heavenly Father gave us His Son, Jesus Christ. So we don't have to do it alone. We never have to do it alone. It's so hard to do it alone, so please turn to Him. He loves you so much. 

Jesus Christ, Redeemer.

Jesus Christ is our Redeemer. To help you, I have kindly looked up the word redeemer. A redeemer is a person who redeems someone or something. I also looked up redeems. Redeems means compensates for the faults or bad aspects of. What it all comes down to is this: Jesus Christ was (and is) willing to redeem you; that is, pay for everything wrong you've done. He did this through the Atonement. Through the Atonement, we can change to become a better version of ourself so that we can ultimately live and dwell in His presence. I know He lives. I know that He died for us. I know that He wants us to use the Atonement to save ourselves (If we don't use the Atonement, then He will have done it in vain. But guess what? He'll still love you. He will always love you). He wants to help us return to live with our Heavenly Father. But the only way to do that is through Him—our Redeemer. If we let Him, He can help us redeem ourselves and become worthy to live in His presence. But only if we let Him. He has done all He can until you let Him in—then He will help you with the rest. :)

How have I held it all together?

I have had a really rough past couple of days/weeks/months, and today was especially hard. I got up, still feeling kind of sick. I had had a little "me" time last night; I went to a concert and I really enjoyed myself; I got to let go of everything and just listen and watch and enjoy. Anyway, this morning I was feeling kind of ill still and I went to ask my mom about something; I think I asked if daddy could give me a blessing. It was, you know, five o'clock in the morning, so she just told me to take some Tylenol and put the heating pad on my stomach and wait for a while. So, I took the Tylenol and went to lay down. For the next hour or so, I lay in my bed, pain running through my abdomen. I tried everything: I tried putting the heating pad in different places on my tummy; I tried holding it differently; I tried holding it against my tummy as I lay on my tummy; I tried holding it on my tummy as I lay on my back. The pain was just so, so bad I curled up in a ball and held the heating pad against my stomach and cried. I cried to my Heavenly Father; I cried for my daddy; I cried for my mom. I just wanted relief. I finally just told myself to get up; I counted to three and got up. I thought it would make me feel better if I got moving; I had, after all, been sitting--nay, laying--on my bed curled up in pain for almost two hours. So, I decided that I was going to wear a dress today because I was taking the ACT and I really don't know why but for some reason dressing up helps me think better or relax or something. Anyway, I head into the bathroom and I get dizzy and woozy and I head over to the toilet, hoping and praying that I wouldn't throw up. I did; I started sobbing, heaving, heavy sobs. More heavy than when I had been in bed. My brother went and got my dad, who went and got my mom because he was taking my brother to school. I stood up, brushed my teeth, and I felt better; I honestly felt better and I thought that I could go about my day. I still felt sick but I felt loads better. I got dressed and went into the kitchen; I didn't really want to eat anything; my mom told me I could have some sprite or some yogurt. I had some sprite but I didn't really eat any of the yogurt because I just didn't feel too good. I went to brush my teeth again and I started to brush my tongue for whatever reason. Big mistake. I started to throw up, in the sink. I quickly walked over to the toilet, but I started crying again because once you can kind of overlook, but twice? Nuh-uh, that's a sure sign of "stay home". My mom called the school and was told that me not going wouldn't harm anything; it was just a missed opportunity to take the ACT. My mom left it up to me. I was really, really sick (I had just thrown up twice, for Pete's sake) and tired, and I just wanted to sleep, but I decided to take the test. My dad gave me a blessing before he took me to school, and I prayed and prayed in my heart as we drove to school and all throughout the test. There was a couple of times where I thought "Oh, no, this is it" and I was sure I was going to throw up, but I took deep breaths, in and out, and I got through it. I drank lots of water and I finished (mostly) that stupid, stupid timed test without throwing up. I owe it all to my Heavenly Father. Without Him, I probably would have thrown up that first time. I prayed; I prayed really, really hard that I wouldn't throw up. I took deep breaths and I PRAYED, and it was answered. I am still feeling sick, but I am going to see the doctor on Monday and maybe we will be able to find out what is wrong with me. This pain is unlike any pain I have ever felt before, but I don't have to go through it alone. My Savior suffered for this pain of mine, and He has felt it, too. I can turn to Him for comfort and relief, and that is exactly what I have been doing today (when I wasn't sleeping). I don't know how I have held it all together. Actually, I do; I haven't. It's as simple as that. I haven't held it all together. I have had to turn to, rely on, and trust in my Savior and my Heavenly Father too many times to count in the past couple of months. My testimony of this gospel, of my Savior, and of the power of the Atonement has grown tenfold. There is absolutely NO way at ALL that I would have EVER been able to get through everything that I have gotten through without the help of my Savior. I love Him with all of my heart and I am so thankful that my daddy holds the priesthood worthily and is able to give me blessings when I want or need them. So, again, in answer to my question "How have I held it all together", the truth is, I haven't. My Savior has been there EVERY step of the way, and He has lifted me when I could not carry on. He is my rock, and my foundation, and I love Him. He has been my glue; He is piecing me back together from what I was to what I need to become. I trust Him with all of my heart. I am so glad He knows what He is doing.

Love.

I absolutely love these! The first picture is just saying that we need to love God with all our heart and might and mind and strength, and that we need to serve Him. The second one is saying that no matter what you've gone through--no matter how hurt you are or how broken you've become, through the Atonement, you can become healed, and I know this to be true. His Atonement is there for you. Always. He is always there for you. He loves us all and is willing to be our Savior and Redeemer, if we will let Him. He is waiting for us to come unto Him. 

Forever families.

I am so grateful for my family. I am so grateful that I can live with my family forever because of my Savior, Jesus Christ. He died and was resurrected so that we can all live forever with our families.

This sweet boy is my little brother forever!! And I am so thankful for him!! :)

One meaning of Christmas.

Christmas is on WEDNESDAY. I can't believe it. This year has gone by so fast, and yet, so slow. A lot has happened in short amounts of time. I have seen many miracles, but I have also seen some tragedies. I am constantly reminded of the sacrifices that have been made for me, especially at Christmastime--like the sacrifice made by my Savior, Jesus Christ. He came to earth to save us all. He came to be the perfect example to those He met, but especially to those He did not, including you and I. Whether or not you believe in Him, He died for you. He atoned for you. He loved us beyond anything you or I could ever imagine. And Heavenly Father loved us all so, so much that He sent His Son to die for us, and be resurrected so that, someday, we can all live with our families forever. I am so, so, so thankful for the example of my Savior, and for the love He and my Heavenly Father show me all day, every day, especially when I don't deserve it. 

Life happens, and sometimes you have to pause it.

Life is hard sometimes, and sometimes we need to put it on pause or on hold for a little while, but with the help of our Savior, family, and friends, we can get through anything. Our Savior died and atoned for us so that we can live together as families in the eternities. I love that families are sealed together forever because when people die, it doesn't end. It doesn't have to end, because it doesn't. There is more to life than living. When we die, we return to being a spirit. When I was baptized, I promised to "mourn with those that mourn" and "comfort those that stand in need of comfort" and I promised to be "willing to bear one another's burdens that they may be light." Well, tonight I did all three of those, and I hope that I helped my friend and her family. Life is a happy thing, and death is a sad thing, but, in the end, it will all be worth it. The Lord loves you, He will always love you, and He NEVER forgets you. He blesses you, and things happen for a reason. We may not always know that reason, but there is a reason.